Mihajlo D. Mesarovic (
Serbian Latin
Gaj's Latin alphabet ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Gajeva latinica, separator=" / ", Гајева латиница}, ), also known as ( sh-Cyrl, абецеда, ) or ( sh-Cyrl, гајица, link=no, ), is the form of the Latin script used for writing Serb ...
: ''Mihajlo D. Mesarović'',
Serbian Cyrillic
The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, th ...
: Михајло Д. Месаровић; born 2 July 1928) is a
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
n
scientist
A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences.
In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...
, who is a professor of
Systems Engineering
Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their enterprise life cycle, life cycles. At its core, systems engineering util ...
and
Mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
at
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...
. Mesarovic has been a pioneer in the field of systems theory, he was
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
Scientific Advisor on
Global change
Global change in broad sense refers to planetary-scale changes in the Earth system. It is most commonly use to encompass the variety of changes connected to the rapid increase in human activities which started around mid-20th century, i.e. the ...
and also a member of the
Club of Rome
The Club of Rome is a nonprofit, informal organization of intellectuals and business leaders whose goal is a critical discussion of pressing global issues. The Club of Rome was founded in 1968 at Accademia dei Lincei in Rome, Italy. It consists ...
.
Biography
Mihajlo D. Mesarović was born on 2 July 1928, in
Zrenjanin
Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; hu, Nagybecskerek; ro, Becicherecu Mare; sk, Zreňanin; german: Großbetschkerek) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous pro ...
,
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
. He was awarded the B.S. from the
University of Belgrade
The University of Belgrade ( sr, / ) is a public university in Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia.
Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac-b ...
Faculty of Electrical Engineering in 1951. In 1955 he received a
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in Technical sciences from the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts.
From 1951 to 1955, Mesarović was a research assistant at the Nikola Tesla Institute in Belgrade. From 1955 to 1958 he was head of the inspection department of the Institute. At the same time, Mesarović held academic positions at University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia from 1954 to 1958. In 1958 he became professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology / USA (MIT), where he served until 1959. He was associate professor at
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...
from 1959 to 1964 and professor from 1964 to 1978. In that time he was head of the Systems Engineering Group 1965–68, head of the Systems Engineering Department 1968-72 and director of the Systems Research Center 1968–78. Starting 1978, Prof. Mesarović has been the
Cady Staley Professor of Systems Engineering and Mathematics. One of his students was
Roger W. Brockett
Roger Ware Brockett (born October 22, 1938 in Seville, Ohio) is an American control theorist and the An Wang Professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at Harvard University, who founded thHarvard Robotics Laboratoryin 1983.
Brocket ...
.
He has lectured in more than 60 countries, advised government officials on a variety of issues, consulted for international organizations, and published widely.
He was also the founder of the 'Mathematical Theory of General Systems' Journal, Springer Verlag.
In 1999, he was appointed a Scientific Advisor on Global Change by Federico Mayor, Director-General of the UNESCO. In that role, Mesarović traveled to UNESCO's headquarters in Paris and advised the director general's office on issues such as climate change, economics, population, technology transfer, and the education of women in developing countries.
In 2005 he was awarded the Hovorka Prize from
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...
for exceptional achievements.
In 2005 he was awarded the USA Club of Rome Lifetime Achievement Award at the United Nations.
Work
His research interests include the areas and topics like
complexity
Complexity characterises the behaviour of a system or model whose components interaction, interact in multiple ways and follow local rules, leading to nonlinearity, randomness, collective dynamics, hierarchy, and emergence.
The term is generall ...
,
complex systems
A complex system is a system composed of many components which may interact with each other. Examples of complex systems are Earth's global climate, organisms, the human brain, infrastructure such as power grid, transportation or communication s ...
theory,
global change
Global change in broad sense refers to planetary-scale changes in the Earth system. It is most commonly use to encompass the variety of changes connected to the rapid increase in human activities which started around mid-20th century, i.e. the ...
and sustainable human development, hierarchical systems, large-scale systems theory, mathematical theory of general systems, multi-level systems,
systems biology
Systems biology is the computational modeling, computational and mathematical analysis and modeling of complex biological systems. It is a biology-based interdisciplinary field of study that focuses on complex interactions within biological syst ...
, and world and regional modeling. In the field of mathematics he is considered to be founder of:
* Mathematical theory of coordination
* Multi-level Hierarchical Systems Developer,
* Negotiation Support Software System
Publications
Mesarovic published several books and numerous articles. A selection:
* 1960. ''Multi-variable Control Systems''. MIT Press.
* 1962. ''General Systems Theory and Systems Research Contrasting Conceptions of Systems Science''. (ed.) Proceedings from the Second System Symposium.
* 1964. ''Foundations for a General Systems Theory''. (ed.)
* 1968. ''Systems Theory and Biology''. (ed.). Springer Verlag.
* 1970. ''Non-Numerical Problem Solving''. with R. Banerji (ed.), Springer Verlag, 1970.
* 1970. ''Theory of Multi-level Hierarchical Systems''. With D. Macko and Yasuhiko Takahara. Academic Press.
* 1972. ''Mathematical Theory of General Systems''. With Y. Takahara. Academic Press.
* 1972. ''Organization Structure: Cybernetic Systems Foundation''. IFSR Int’l. Series on Systems Science and Engineering, Vol. 22. Kluwer, Academic Publishers.
* 1972. ''Systems Approach and the City''. Edited with Arnold Reisman. North Holland Publishing Co., Amsterdam.
* 1974. ''Mankind at the Turning Point'', Second Report to the Club of Rome, co-authored with
Eduard Pestel
Eduard Kurt Christian Pestel (born 29 May 1914 in Hildesheim, died 19 September 1988 in Hannover) was a German industrial designer economist, professor of mechanics and politician. He was coauthor with Mihajlo Mesarovic of ''Mankind at the turning ...
. Dutton, reviewed with summaries of chapters.
* 1975. ''General Systems Theory: Mathematical Foundations''. With Yasuhiko Takaraha.
* 1994. ''Abstract Systems Theory'', Springer
Articles:
* 1996
"Cybernetics of global change: human dimension and managing of complexity" With David L. McGinnis and A. West Dalton. UNESCO MOST policy papers 3, 43 p.
See also
*
Club of Rome
The Club of Rome is a nonprofit, informal organization of intellectuals and business leaders whose goal is a critical discussion of pressing global issues. The Club of Rome was founded in 1968 at Accademia dei Lincei in Rome, Italy. It consists ...
*
Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations
Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations (FRFG), also known as Stiftung für die Rechte zukünftiger Generationen (SRzG), is a German think tank and activist group focused on intergenerational justice and sustainability. Established in ...
*
Systems biology
Systems biology is the computational modeling, computational and mathematical analysis and modeling of complex biological systems. It is a biology-based interdisciplinary field of study that focuses on complex interactions within biological syst ...
*
Systems engineering
Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their enterprise life cycle, life cycles. At its core, systems engineering util ...
*
Ladislaus Bortkiewicz
Ladislaus Josephovich Bortkiewicz (Russian Владислав Иосифович Борткевич, German ''Ladislaus von Bortkiewicz'' or ''Ladislaus von Bortkewitsch'') (7 August 1868 – 15 July 1931) was a Russian economist and statisti ...
References
External links
*
*
Homepageat th
Complex Systems Biology Center Case Western Reserve University
''(cached version'')
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mesarovic, Mihajlo D.
1928 births
Living people
Control theorists
Systems biologists
Systems engineers
Systems scientists
Complex systems scientists
University of Belgrade School of Electrical Engineering alumni
American people of Serbian descent
American systems scientists
Serbian engineers